Reunion, and Rebirth
by Trinity's Mirror
Summary: What of Logan's past? What connection does a young woman have to Wolverine, Magneto, and the dark mutants? NO SLASH WHATSOEVER! Logan does not appear immediately. Disclaimer: Some scenes are borrowed for content from the movies. I DO NOT OWN THEM! Got it?
1. Caught

I hid out in the school's co-ed locker room, trying to do homework, and forget the past. I succeeded in losing myself in drudge work, so much so that I failed to hear his footsteps. At the last possible second, I heard a whisper of sound, and turned. His huge, clawed hand, large enough to squeeze my head like a bubble, grasped my throat. I looked up into black eyes tinged with red insanity and froze.

"No one escapes me…" He growled into my ears. I realized this was it; no more running. He drew back his hand to knock me into a limp, agreeable bundle, and the door burst open, releasing a tidal wave of hot, sweaty, underdressed males.

He growled in frustration, and leapt away, disappearing as silently as he had come. I sank to my knees, trembling. "Hey songbird, whatcha want? I ain't gonna go out with you." As the laughter echoed, I looked up to find I had fallen at the feet of Aaron Mitchell, the totally hot, totally arrogant football quarterback.

As they moved away to their lockers, I rolled my eyes at their retreating backs, while mentally blushing. I collected myself together, pushing all thoughts of my hunter out of my mind as I pushed myself up off the floor. I very quietly gathered my things and turned to leave. Then I coughed.

I didn't notice it at first, but then I tasted the blood. "No, not here, not again," I whispered painfully. I felt my stomach spasm, and ran. I made it to the far side of the football field before the spasms caught up with me. I doubled over, blood pouring from my mouth, and fought to keep from slipping into unconsciousness.


	2. Goodbye

When, an eternity later, it stopped, I focused dizzily, and rinsed my mouth out, then collected the blood back into myself. Since I had left, my attacks/spasms had gotten more frequent, and lasted longer, but I didn't care. The attacks were better than "just one more experiment."

After I ran, I used my uncle's account number to take, oh, about $1000.00. He could afford it, and he definitely deserved it. The first thing I did was find a close-mouthed doctor to remove the "additions". Then I left so that if he were discovered, he wouldn't know anything more than was necessary.

I was walking down a strip mall when I saw the T.V. bulletin. It was spreading my face over all New York. A policeman stopped me and I pretended to be upset with all these people who kept stopping me because I looked like the girl on T.V. He apologized, and I disappeared.

To make a long story short, I enrolled in the local high school, hoping to disappear into the faceless teenage mass. Obviously, I had failed. Now that he had found me, I had to run again. I went to the office, checked out sick, then got on my 'cycle. Suddenly, from out of nowhere Tom came running up to me. "Ari! Where are you going?" "I'm sorry, Tom. It's time. I have to go." He seized my arm. "NO! You can't leave me!"

I kissed him one last time, and gently shook myself loose. "Goodbye, Tom. I'm sorry." "I LOVE YOU!" He screamed at my receding back. I ignored him. It was better this way. He could find a girl who could really love him, and not be looking over her shoulder all the time. I flipped my signal and headed for the highway. I drove, and drove, until I was nearly out of gas.

Songbird. That was what they called me back there. I am Aria Lovella. You know, Aria? As in, a musical composition? Hence, the nickname: Songbird. I filled up at a hick gas station and continued running.


	3. Rescue

The three of them listened to his pathetic excuses; then the man spoke. "Find her. She belongs to me, and I will not lose her. Do what you will with her, but be gentle. I want her alive." He listened quietly to these instructions, and nodded, rumbling agreement, and cut the communication feed.

The man switched off his end, then turned away and whispered, partly to himself, and partly to the girl running nearly half a world away from him. "You are mine, Aria. I will find you."

Q

I awoke to look down the barrel of a gun. "Get out!" a voice cried. Moving very slowly, I pulled a fifty-dollar bill out of my pocket and laid it down. "Thank you," I said quietly, grabbed my stuff, and left while the man was still staring at the fifty. Ah well, another day, another run. Has it really been six years since I escaped him? I had run form him, and eluded him successfully until six months ago, at that dratted high school. I should have known better than to stay so long.

I know he's still out there somewhere, looking for me. I can hear his angry roars in my dreams. You want to know why I don't name my hunter? "_Because you idiot,_" I tell my mental self. "_He is superhuman. If I speak his name, he will know it, and find me._"

I kept driving, still wanting to keep as much space as possible between the two of us. I passed the state line: Welcome to New York. I had circled back and wanted to close down what was left of my life here. I pulled into a busy town and hid my 'cycle. I walked into a small diner, and ordered a burger. Then, out of thin air, I heard a derisive voice from my past.

"Hey Songbird! Long time, no see, eh?" I turned and saw my old high school enemy, Aaron Mitchell, still hanging out with the same crowd of perverts.

He crowded up against me, saying, "Where you been? I think we need to teach you about running away from us." I shoved him off me, drained my drink, and faced him. "Go ahead. You know you want to. Tom was the only reason you never did before. Besides, I wouldn't need to run away from you, you're not worth my time. I have bigger problems to worry about."

I pushed past them, and headed for my cycle. "_When will you ever learn that towns are not good for you and lead to trouble?_" I berated myself angrily. I pulled it out of the brush and was about to start it when they came, surrounding me and pulling me off the cycle. I kicked, bit, and scratched, trying to bring to bear the tactics I had seen my hunter use. It was no use.

They jerked me around to face Aaron who said, "Now what, girl, you gonna be smart now?" I opened my mouth to retort, and saw black eyes behind Aaron. I paled, and they turned to see what I saw. It was their last action against me.

He took out three with one swipe, and I ran. Forget the cycle, forget Aaron. All I could think about was not letting him near me. I started screaming when I saw him and never let up. I chanced a glance behind me, and fell. I rolled over and saw him staring down at me.

He reached down one massive hand, and clamped it over my screaming mouth, then started dragging me back out of sight. I was paralyzed with desperate fear. He reached my cycle and slung me over the back of it.

When I kept squirming and screaming, he cuffed me on the side of my head, and growled, "Shut up." The obedience reflex that he had beaten into me for eight years kicked in, and I lay in quiet despair. Suddenly, a storm began to blow up. Thunder rattled around us, and I saw a white-haired, white-eyed woman at the end of the clearing.

As he turned away to meet her, hands grabbed me and pulled me off the cycle. I opened my mouth to scream, (again), and a red-visored face appeared in front of me, laid a finger to my lips, and said, "Shhh. Wait here." He disappeared and I tried to lever myself to my feet and run, but I had no strength. Feebly, I tried to escape, but then Red Visor returned.

It dawned on me who he was, but I had to be sure. "What…?" He replied, "It's okay, you're safe now." I shook my head, feeling strength fade. "No, I'll never be safe. He'll hunt me, until he finds me. Who are you?" He smiled and said, "Scott Summers. They call me…"

I interrupted. "Cyclops? But you can't exist. You're just…a…myth……" I felt the blackness close in as the woman walked up.


	4. Who are You?

Cyclops stared at the unconscious girl a few moments, puzzled by her words and the way she trembled, even though unaware. Storm walked up to him, and the girl started twitching even more violently. Cyclops said, "Storm, wait. Step back." She complied, and the girl's tremors subsided.

"She's reacting to your presence. I can bring her. You go on. Take her cycle; we'll be along shortly." He turned back to the girl and lifted her easily, taking her back to the professor.

Q

I brought myself slowly to consciousness. Before opening my eyes, I gathered my powers to retaliate if necessary. I hoped that he hadn't caught me. Wait. What am I talking about? Who's "He"? Why is he trying to catch me?

I began to sort my memories, but stopped, shocked to discover that they ended after I left Mrs. Jules' Academy for the Young Bereaved. In other words, orphans. The only other memory was this room.

I opened my eyes and glanced around then tried to lift my head. I had no strength. I was literally paralyzed! I heard a door open behind me, but no footsteps. At the corner of my vision, I saw a floating head. "Can you speak?" the head asked. I tried, and croaked out, "Who are you? Who am I? Where am I?" "Slow down. I am Professor Charles Xavier."

"Professor X." I said. "You're in a wheelchair, aren't you?" He frowned. "Yes..." He said, leaning forward, and steepling his fingers together. "How did you know I am Professor X?"

"I...I...I don't know. I can't remember anything!" The door opened again. Footsteps echoed and a man I had never seen before stood over me. I asked him, "If I have never seen you before in my life, how do I know that you are Scott Summers, they call you Cyclops, and that you love Jean Gray!" I ended on a scream. He glanced at the professor who clarified, "Amnesia."

The professor rolled closer, and asked, "What's the last thing you remember before waking up here?" I frowned in thought, and said, "Leaving the orphanage, - Mrs. Jules' Academy for the Young Bereaved with a man who said he was my uncle."

He rolled around to the head of the table, saying, "Scott, give her the anti-reaction serum for the steroids. I'm going to read her, and see what we can find."

His hands encircled my head, while Cyclops slipped an IV into my arm. Images flashed through my head, then cut off like a bad movie. The professor sighed and said, "I knew it." I decided I didn't want to know what he knew, and changed the subject. "What are the steroids for?"

He looked relieved and told me, "You are a water power, and reacted to Storm's electricity. The steroids cut the reaction, but have a side effect of paralysis. But, I have to caution you: heightened emotion with make you make reactive to her electricity. The steroids should last for at least six months, but heightened emotion will dampen their efficiency temporarily. The serum will restore your function. But in the meantime, I need you to come with me, so you'll have to be carried. There's no other option."

I began to protest, but he cut me off, saying, "Scott, it'll have to be you, Logan, or Kurt. I would rather you take care of those exams, so find one of the others." Cyclops said, "Kurt's right down the hall. Where do you want her?"

The professor shook himself out of reverie, and answered, "Oh, uh, over in the lab room, I want to study the water reaction." As he left the room he called back, "And have Kitty set her up a room!" Scott glanced at me and said, "Be right back." He left and I tried to regain my memory.


	5. Memory

Almost immediately he was back with a creature that had the bluest skin, and longest tail I had ever seen. "Guten Tag!" He smiled at me, and then wrapped his arms around me, and the room jumped. I felt a spasm, and screamed.

Startled, he dropped me, and I twisted around to land on my feet. The serum had worked! I felt my elation turn to pain, and fell on my knees, blood gushing from my mouth, and I fought to hold it back. I felt hands holding me upright, and keeping my knee-length hair out of the way.

I fell back against the support, who said, "You okay? Somebody get the professor! And get a mop to clean this up!" I waved them away, protesting, "No, no mop. I'll get it." I raised myself up, and collected the blood into myself once again.

I looked up to find the professor, a bunch of kids, and a man with a weird hairdo staring at me. The professor said, "Well, I see you've met Logan and Kurt." I looked around, but didn't see Kurt. "Where is he?"

"He felt guilty and thought your…" The professor gestured to where the blood had been. "Your…attack was caused by his teleportation." I flushed and Logan said, "Anyway, this takes the cake for most interesting introduction. For the record, I'm Logan" He held out his hand.

"I know, David. And you are also Wolverine." I said. "I'm Hannah Carter, I think." He looked baffled, but I didn't notice, as I finally saw the hallway in which I stood. So that's what they meant by teleportation. I was in the middle of a school.

I followed the professor down the hall and into what looked like and enormous den. A T.V. blared in one corner and a foosball table rattled against one wall. Kids were everywhere.

I must have looked overwhelmed because Logan laid a hand on my shoulder and said, "Don't worry. You'll get used to them. The kids are a major pain, but you learn to live with them." We continued on to a door on the far wall.

AsLogan reached it, I heard a T.V. newscaster say, "And in other news today, the mutant terrorist, Sabertooth is still at large. He reportedly travels with Magneto and a woman named Mystique…"

She continued on, but I heard none of it. Sabertooth. The "He" I feared. My memory rushed back, and with it unconsciousness. I heard the professor and Logan cry, "Hannah!" As I fell face forward, the last thing I felt was Logan life me from the floor.

Q

I awoke again, this time with the usual fear. Logan, Scott, Kurt, and the professor stood over me, and behind them I saw Ororo Monroe (Storm), and Jean Gray. I tried to sit up, and Kurt pushed me back down.

"No, you haff nod de strength." I gave him my stare, and said, "Let. Go. Of. Me." He backed away, and I stood up. "I thank you for your hospitality and your help. I must go."

Logan grabbed my arm. "Hannah, wait." I turned and backhanded him across the face. He flew backwards and tripped over the professor's wheelchair, nearly tipping it over in the process.

I ran over to him, straightened the prof's chair, and helped Logan up, all the while saying, "ImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorryImsorry!" Logan shook his head as if to clear away the cobwebs, and I cringed, and then ran.

"_Must my whole life be spent running away from something or someone?" _I asked myself. I made it to the den before Logan caught up to me.


	6. Truth

He grabbed my shoulders and shook me, saying, "Snap out of it!" I calmed down, and pushed him away. "I'm sorry. It's force of habit." "The prof. said you had amnesia. Is there any way I can help? I turned to face him, tears falling down.

"The amnesia's gone now. He's coming. I'm the one he wants, and he's not afraid to kill for me. I must go."

He caught my hand. "Stay. He can't have you. I won't allow it." He led me back to a private study where the rest of them were waiting. The professor insisted, "Hannah, we need to know the truth. It may save lives." I took a deep breath, thinking, "_Fine. If they want it, they're gonna get it._"

"Hannah Carter is dead, Charles Xavier. She died on Friday, October 13, when he uncle adopted her from the orphanage. She was six years old. Aria Lovella was born in her place. I was there for eight years. I escaped six and a half years ago. He caught me only once. Then, he caught me outside of New York, and there is where Cyclops and Storm found me."

The prof. asked, "Do you have any other family? Who is your uncle and is he the one chasing you?" I shook my head. "My parents were killed during a subway hijack. The tunnel collapsed. Only the five children survived: me, three others, and my brother, David Logan Carter."

I fastened my eyes on Logan, whom I hadn't seen in 15 years. Before they could speak, I continued, "My hunter is Sabertooth. My uncle- Eric Lenscher."

In the silence that followed, I bowed my head, and displayed what abilities I had. Wings, with a 30-foot span, unfolded from my back, an orb of water appeared in my left hand, and ropes of water spun from the fingers of my other hand, twirling around me.

I raised my face, changed to resemble the professor's, with eyes of pure white, and spoke, in a dragon-deep voice. "I am she who controls the seas, she who bends air beneath her wings. I am she who is dead, and lives. I am Aria Lovella. I am Aqua."

The water ropes spun faster and faster around me as I spoke, obscuring all but my dead-white eyes. They slowed and shrank, along with my wings and orb, finally disappearing. I bowed my head, awaiting their judgment. The professor rolled forward, laid a hand on my shoulder and said, "Welcome to the X-Men."


	7. Unforgiven

1 week later...

I decided it was time to alleviate guilt and take care of explanations. I found the professor first, and luckily, Kurt was with him. I knocked on the door frame. "May I come in?" The professor waved me in, and would have dismissed Kurt until I said, "Actually, I wanted to talk to both of you." I explained to Kurt first.

"Look, my attack wasn't your fault. I've lived with those attacks for nearly 18 years. It came with the mutant abilities. I guess you could call it my curse. Eric had a remedy, but I don't know what it was." He looked bewildered. "So I didn't...?" "Right." Next, I turned to the professor.

"You remember I told you Logan was my brother? And that my parents died in the subway?" At his nod, I continued nervously. "Well ...I...I didn't tell you the whole story." He frowned, and I finished quickly.

"My mutations manifested themselves at age 3. The hijackers had decided hostages were an easy was to succeed, and children were easy to control. I was first choice, David-second. I panicked. I didn't know what else to do. I pulled, and something snapped, in me and in the tunnel. Water poured in drowning everyone, including my parents. David never knew the truth."

The prof. asked, "And why are you telling me this?"

"How can I tell Logan? Should I tell Logan?"

A voice spoke behind me. "I think you just did." I wheeled around, and Logan stood in the doorway, but a Logan I had never seen. The anger radiated off him in waves: anger and pain. I opened my mouth to apologize, and he growled, "Don't bother."

He stalked away, and I glanced at the professor, and then ran after him. He stalked out the front door, ignoring my yells of "Logan!"

I heard an engine rev, and stood in the doorway, watching him disappear on my cycle. Numbly, I stumbled back, closed the door, and sank onto the couch. I felt someone sink down next to me and burst into tears. Arms encircled me, as I wept out my childhood pain.

When the tears passed, I found myself clinging to Cyclops. He didn't seem to be bothered by me, and I couldn't make myself let go of my last link to sanity. I felt my entire body trembling and thought it was shock.

The tremors became worse, and Cyclops tightened his hold on me, and said, "Kurt, run upstairs and ask Storm to move." The trembling stopped, and Cyclops asked, "Aria, are you okay?" I eased away from him, and wiped my eyes. "Yeah," I whispered.

Kurt burst in front of me, and asked, "Do you loff heem, care for heem?" I nodded, and he said, "Den find heem. You, and dis Institution are all he has. Bring heem back." His words gave me strength, and I said, "You're right."

I drew my feet up under me, and crouched on the couch. Gathering my strength, I leapt up, bounced off the wall, and landed on one of the high windows.

While Kurt and Cyclops watched, I turned to face the window, pushed it open, and fell backwards. Twisting, I snapped my wings open, and soared up through the open window.


	8. All I Have

Even with a bird's eye view, I saw no sign of Logan. Closing my eyes, I let intuition guide my wings and landed in the parking lot of a bar. I folded my wings away, adjusted a hat on my head, and walked in. A bouncer stopped me as soon as I walked in the door.

I flashed my I.D. and said, "Don't worry, I'm not here to drink or pick up a date. I'm looking for someone." He grunted. "That's what they all say, sweetheart." He trundled off back to the door, and I spotted Logan. I pulled my hat down lower, and slipped onto a nearby stool, then ordered a whiskey.

"To family!" I toasted, and devoured half the bottle. Logan swung around to face me, and scowled. "What're you doing here? Your kind doesn't come to these places." "They do when there is reason," I said quietly. He scowled even more, paid for his drinks, and walked out, holding a bottle.

I caught his arm as he went by me. "Logan, please. Let me explain." He fixed one murderous eye on me, and swung a roundhouse punch to my head. I sprawled full length on the floor, and he yelled, "I have waited my WHOLE LIFE, to find you, and then you tell me THIS!"

I watched him, and then replied, "What would you have me do? It's not as though I had a choice. I have blamed myself for 17 years because of that. I know it was my fault! You don't remember, but for all those years we were together after that I cried myself to sleep every single night! Please, blame me!

"I know exactly how you feel, but your pain could never exceed mine. I remembered everything! Crying each time the anniversary came by! Wanting so badly to take his knives and end it all. And the one person, the only person who might have cared didn't even know what happened or where I was, and would hate me if they knew the truth. I tried to be strong for you until you left, but I know I deserve nothing from you!"

He threw the bottle aside, and stormed out the door. Someone helped me to my feet, and the bartender said, "Listen honey, you don't have to go back to him. Your man ain't worth it. There's a place you can bed down here." I shook my head.

"He's not my man, but he's all I have."


	9. Reunion, and Rebirth

He stared at me, and then replied, "Fine with me. Any woman foolish enough to stay with a mutant freak who abuses her deserves what she gets." I stopped dead. "Excuse me?" I whispered in a hissing tone, my eyes glazing white.

"You heard what I said. That's my view." I grabbed his shirt and pulled him to me. "Listen buddy, nobody insults my brother!" My wings snapped up behind me, and he turned pale. "He is NOT a mutant freak, nor an abuser. He is a man who has been deeply hurt by me. I'm doing what I can to fix that. Don't make it any harder than it already is."

I dropped him, snared my whiskey, and walked out, draining the bottle. The woods had a little walking trail back in them, leading to a small lake with an overview. Following it, I found Logan at the overview.

His back was to me, and the sun shone in his face, haloing his taut body in the evening's glory. I watched the light play around the hardened muscles in his arms, and ripple along the swell of his shoulders.

I sighed, and walked up beside him. He took a drag of his cigarette, and blew a misty halo for the sun. I opened my mouth to apologize, but Logan beat me to it. "I just … you know … hoped that, even after all these years, my family might still be alive."

"But they are alive, in a way. They live on in your heart. They loved you dearly; that I can assure you. Now, we are the only family each other have." I said quietly. "Now, let's go home." He turned and stared at me, then slowly nodded. "Yes, let's go home."

We headed back down into the parking lot, arm in arm. I pulled him to my cycle, but stopped short. "Trouble …" I warned him, jerking my head toward the small clan gathered nearby. My nemesis: Aaron. "_Why does he keep following me?_" I wondered. Logan just grinned, and dangled the keys in front of my eyes. "Don't worry, kid. I'm here."

I snatched them from my brother, stuck my tongue out at him, and raced him across the parking lot. Unsurprisingly, he won. Immediately, Aaron decided to be his doltish self and intervene. "So, didn't take you long to get over breaking Tom's heart, did it?" Logan scowled and would have escalated our "discussion" into a fight, but I elbowed him.

"Shove off, little boy. I outrank you." Aaron grinned, and I felt a chill down my spine. "Ah, but my new friend outranks you."

Something slammed past my head, and I saw Logan fly into a tree, followed closely by … _Oh dear Lord, not again, please, not again._ I froze, and Aaron's thugs closed in around me. A hand clamped onto my arm, and I was suddenly three years old again, clutched in the hands of a madman about to murder my whole life.

An audible snapping sound came from within me, echoing down from the past, and I returned to full reality. "NO!" I screamed, and flung him away from me.

Wings snapped into existence, and I drained my waterstores, letting the ropes spin out around me, the water heated by my fury to past the boiling point. The goons screamed as boils and burns popped up all over them, and I turned my white eyes on Aaron.

I heard a freakishly high scream of terror out of him, and then watched him break a track record running away. Sabertooth had succeeded in crushing my brother into unconsciousness, and I growled in rage, launching myself at him.

He caught me halfway, and flung me to the ground, intent on salvaging his wounded pride. I tried to twist to my feet, catlike, but the searing sting of broken ribs disabused me of the idea.

He once again wrapped his hands around my neck, lifting me effortlessly. They tightened, and then he swung his head around as a voice spoke. "Hey bub, nobody touches my sister."

His hands were snatched away from me, leaving claw marks oozing blood down onto my shoulders. He crashed against a tree, and Logan dropped to the ground, his strength spent. Sabertooth was still conscious, and tried to attack me yet again. I snarled in response, and laid my ropes across his unprotected face.

He bellowed, and I saw a layer of skin peel away, exposing those black eyes I had feared for nearly fifteen long and painful years. My white versus his black. Some would call it a yin/yang balance. I call it gaining a backbone in the face of evil. He collapsed in pain, and I gathered my brother into my arms, and flew out of there, headed home.

I landed on the front porch, calling the professor as I did so. Kurt appeared and disappeared, taking Logan with him, hopefully to the hospital wing. I gave a quick account of our attack, and then managed only one more sentence before crumpling from burnout on the professor's lap: "Would someone please bring my 'cycle back from the Whiskey Rain tavern?"


	10. Power Problem

I woke up in my room, and discovered from a daily calendar that I had slept for a week. An empty chair sat on one side of my bed, and one the other side was a chair full of Logan. The wall clock read 3:00 a.m.

He was slumped over, his head pillowed on my sheets. I slid out the far side, and then dumped in the bed in my place. He grunted, but otherwise didn't stir.

I went out and closed the door behind me, intent on walking until I had found a permanent solution to the problem of Sabertooth. I paced down the hall slowly. I turned a corner and came face-to-face with Cyclops.

He stared at me for a moment, then stuttered, "I … uh … was … uh … making the rooms of the rounds' students, I mean making the students of the round's rooms, I mean, making the rounds of the student's rooms, since Logan been busy, um, watching over you."

I nodded, and said, "I know. You want some company?" He shook his head and said, "Yeah. I mean …" Our quiet conversation was broken by a roar from Logan. I raced back into the room and found Rogue sitting on the bed with Logan's claws coming out of her back.

He snatched the claws back into his hands with a small ring like a switchblade knife, and Rogue, as though in a dream, reached up and touched his face. I had heard of her power, and could only watch in horror as he was drained.

She lurched back from him, and would have fled, but I caught her arm. Strangely, she did not immediately have an effect on me.

"Wait, child. Would you heal him if you could?" She gave me a blank stare, and replied, "Yes, of course."

"Then will you trust me?" I took Logan's hand in mine, and held out my other to Rogue. She shook her head violently, but I caught her eyes with my changed ones and repeated, "Trust me." She placed her hand in mine, and I saw the professor lunge to grab her away, moving as if in slow motion. "NO!"

Her hand touched mine, and I felt a draining begin. I fought it, and pulled back. Suddenly, a foreign thing entered my mind. Sensing Logan's touch, I pushed it down my body and into Logan.

His eyes snapped open, and he and Rogue broke contact simultaneously. He was gasping for air like a landed fish. "Wha- … wha- … what … was … that?" I eyed the professor, wondering at his reaction to my hidden talent.

"You can remove their powers?" He gaped at me, seemingly half-frightened at my ability. "I suppose so, but the last time I tried it, we had disastrous results. Plus, it takes way, way too much energy to do this for fun." I laughed hysterically, and fell flat on my face, burnt out from healing my brother.


	11. Terror Awaits You

The man now known as Sabertooth growled angrily. She was in there, somewhere, a succulent fruit ripe for the master's plucking. Her powers must come to them, not those evil X-Men.

"_Her creations could wipe out the human plague, and leave the world perfected for all our kind!_" He thought gleefully.

He felt a vibration from his "whatever-they're-called-little-talking-boxes". He opened it and growled. "From your greeting, I assume you do not have her in hand?"

"I did, but One Eye and the white-haired freak showed up." He winced as the voice rose to an unbearable pitch.

"THEN GET HER AND BRING HER BACK TO ME, YOU STUPID CREATURE!" The line went dead.

He roared at the box, and would have shattered it into a billion pieces had it not been his only way to speak to the master. She would have to venture outside sometime, and when she did, he would be waiting.

"_The little snip won't burn me this time._"

His eyes were still raw from the lashing she had given them. He could smell her fear of him, even though she was several miles away behind a triple thick wall. He reveled in it, letting it soothe his pain.


	12. Surprise, Professor!

I awoke in a lab room. It seemed that most of my life since I came here had been spent lying in a hospital or conked out in a room somewhere. An I.V. ran something into my bloodstream, probably more of the serum, since emotion had drained much of it. Cyclops came into the room, and asked me, "How are you feeling?"

I shrugged, and he smiled. "Good. The professor ran tests while you were asleep, and thinks we may have found the remedy for your attacks. Is there any way, - and would you allow us - to induce an attack?" I gave him a wry smile.

"You might not believe this, but your timing is right on schedule. I calculated the time between them, and I think the next one is due any minute now." He immediately took me down the hall to another room, where the professor was studying a screen full of DNA.

"What we've found in your blood stream is a component of saliva. We don't know what form or type it is, so study will have to be a major part of this. Do you have any idea what this could be?"

He showed me a DNA twist that was partially broken away on both sides. "The only thing I know about it," I replied, "Is that when he was 'experimenting', it couldn't come from Mystique; only from him or Sabertooth."

The professor grimaced in confusion, and pointed me toward what looked like a state of the art MRI machine. I lay back and was sucked in. It rumbled around me, and then suddenly stopped.

"What the…!" I heard Scott exclaim. I climbed out and stared at the screen, then sighed in relief. "It's just the water." I told them. "My mutation left me with more than just your average human aspects. Let me show you."

I allowed myself to flow into my natural body, my legs stretching to a proper length of four feet, my pointed ears nearly three inches above my head. "I keep them hidden for a purpose. So much so that sometimes I forget that they exist. I don't like to be noticed. In past experience, it leads to trouble."

I gave them a lofty grin, as I looked down from a vantage point a foot above Cyclops's head.

"It creates too many problems, so I keep my shifts to myself." The professor couldn't stop staring, and Scott was surprised out of all tact and stated bluntly, "You're an elf. A living, breathing, winged elf. Holy … I'm speechless."

A soft voice spoke from the doorway. "Then she's achieved the impossible." Jean teased Cyclops, and he blushed and muttered an apology. I waved him off. "Now professor, you wanted to …"

I doubled over, spasms racking my body.


	13. A Cure?

"AHHHH!" The pain had never been this bad before. It felt as though Logan had just punched me, with unsheathed claws. I could no longer hold myself upright.

I crashed to the floor, nearly blind with pain. I was so agonized; I never felt the hypodermic they finally got into my arm. Immediately, the agony began to fade.

Three hours later, it seemed to completely pass. I found they had gotten me down into another room. Logan was beside me, Kurt on my other side, with the professor and Rogue beside him. Scott and Jean stood at the foot of my bed.

"What?" I asked. "Am I just so adorable that you must stare at me for hours on end?" My brother grinned, and then sobered and said, "You nearly died, little one."

"What was my salvation?" I queried, curious to know. "Male saliva. Our tests show that it will work better if fresh," the professor told me. "So what are you saying, exactly? In English, if you don't mind," I insisted.

He gave me one of his "you-will-do-as-I-say-or-suffer" looks. "It's somewhat similar to insulin shots. You'll need one every one to two days, starting today. If you do this, it will pare your attacks down to once a month, but that one will be more painful than all the others put together."

I twisted my face in knots at the thought. "Do I have any other options?"

The professor continued, "Yes, you could continue to let the attacks come as they will, but they would kill you in a matter of months, if you didn't stop them. You would have to stop each individual attack with a fresh sample."

"Meaning?" I coaxed him to finish. "You would … well …" At his obvious floundering, Cyclops took over.

"Meaning you would have to literally French-kiss the nearest male. Or get him to spit in your mouth, which is far less appealing, don't you think?"

Now, I am not a perverted child, but the thought of being able to French-kiss a total stranger and have a medical excuse for doing so, both excited and disgusted me.

"Interesting. Are you sure there is no other way?" I pleaded, hoping that there was. But, my hopes were dashed as they shook their heads.

"All right. Give me a moment, and I'll give you my decision."


	14. Mama Mutant

When my shakiness passed, I sent Logan away to take care of his own affairs. Everyone else had already gone on about their business. I succeeded in achieving solitude, and started wandering around the grounds of the school. Now I had the problem of my remedy, added to the problem of Sabertooth.

I watched the younger students run about in a mad dash game of dodge ball. It sailed over the head of one, and came towards me, but stopped short, and I saw one child staring at it, apparently telepathically throwing it. I smiled in fond remembrance of watching the other children play such games when I was a child.

I continued on my walk, passing outdoor classes, and training exercises. A loud commotion halted all activity, and there was a rush headed for a group of trainees. Dropping my illusions, I floated down between the four fighters, two boys against a boy and girl.

"What's this?" I asked quietly, hoping to calm them into sensibility. It didn't work. "He called us cheap phonies!" One boy yelled out.

The others immediately began screaming their defense or agreement, until I gave a large scale display just to get them to shut up. I calmed myself, and spoke."What is your name?" The boy left the girl talking to a spectator and replied, "Damon."

"You say that they call you fakes, is that correct?" The opposition tried to deny it, but I held up my hand for silence.

"Is that correct?" He nodded sullenly. "Yeah, and they said we didn't know how to fight!" Before they could start up another screaming match, I turned to the two they were accusing. "And your name and explanation is?"

The taller of the two stepped forward. "I'm Jason. Every word I said is true. They may be able to fight, but they could never stand up to us in a good scrap!" As they grinned smugly, Damon launched himself past my shoulder at him.

I caught him in midair, and said, "Learn to control your anger. It can be an effective weapon." I released him, and turned to Jason, who was still grinning like an idiot. "You, as the eldest of this group should know better. Taunts have very little value on the battlefield."

"What are you, my mother?" He shouted at me. I went white to the lips, and then controlled myself. "I wish I were. You, all of you," I specified, turning to each group and the watching crowd, "are sons and daughters to make any mother proud."

I turned my attention back to Jason. "I would be honored to have a son like you. A mutant child." My anger gone, I turned and continued on my walk, but my speech about motherhood had decided my dilemma.


	15. Watcher

"My choice, Professor, is to stop each one individually. If I condense them into one attack per month, I'll end up being out of commission for weeks afterward." He glared at me sternly, clearly not happy with my decision, but if he thought I was going to suffer more pain than was necessary, he had to be insane.

"Are you sure, child? I mean, if neither choice appeals to you, we can always try for another solution." I shook my head.

"Professor, I don't want to put you out more than I can help, but I am not going to be in enough pain to kill me every month. It is simply not going to happen. I have endured enough, and if what you say is true about my inevitable demise without this remedy, then I would rather be in as little pain as possible. The last attack has proven that to me, more than you would realize."

He agreed and returned to his work in Cerebro. I left and finding myself with nothing to do, and since my regime of teaching wouldn't start for another month, I found a secluded area to train in. Believing myself to be alone, I began with a warm-up I had devised.

Q

The dance she wove left a trace upon his mind like a bright star. Twin daggers of emerald purity stalked her every move. Without realizing what he was doing, he had come to the edge of her grove, and was a split second from pouncing when reason took over. He grinned savagely, his face twisted with an unreadable, unrecognizable zeal.

"_That freak that had been following her, what was his name ... ahhhh. Sabertooth._" He thought joyfully. "_He'll help me get her._" Slipping away like mist, he soon came upon tracks of the man he sought.

Q

I completed my warn-up and began on a series of martial arts based maneuvers. My imaginary opponent was no match for blasting water. Suddenly, I found myself fighting a real opponent: David. I ended our bout by wrapping him in water ropes, and bringing a loose end against his neck.

"Surrender." I whispered. He growled at me, "Never. I'll not be beaten by somebody younger than me."

He unexpectedly freed himself, and I found myself lying on my back, three long claws extended across my windpipe. Logan's head appeared above me, and he was grinning. He released me, and I brushed myself off, got up, and bowed to my adversary. He spoke after recovering his breath.

"Well, Mama Aqua, you are one of the few people to ever bring me down, but I could teach you a few tricks." I frowned at him, firmly convinced that my last clout had addled him.

"Mama Aqua? What **are** you talking about, David Logan?"

He pointed to the training grounds I had visited earlier in the day. "Your attempts at mediation have earned you the nickname Mama Aqua. It's all over the school. You impressed these kids. It's kind of hard to do. I think you might be taking on a mother role in their eyes, and I do mean literally."


	16. The Past and The Note

I was shocked to say the least, that these children would see me as a mother. "Are you sure that last hit didn't fry your brains somehow?" I asked suspiciously. He shook his head vehemently. "Positive."

We continued on to where Jean was repairing a casualty of over-exuberant power use by one of the students. She set the satellite dish back in place, and we heard a cheer from a group of students gathered around a T.V. inside. Turning, she asked, "How was practice, Mama?"

I must have looked confused, because she continued, "We saw your dance from the fourth floor window." I nodded, and replied, "It was pretty good, though my ego was rather deflated when Logan escaped me."

She laughed, and then turned as though she heard a voice calling her. "The professor is calling. Excuse me." She ran off to see what he wanted.

Logan went to check on a student he had left trying to flame away a bowl of water. I walked on, looking to see where I could best perch to watch all the classes. Finally, I spotted a perfect cubbyhole high on a far wing of the mansion.

I flew up and over the students, who stopped their play for a moment to watch me, then resumed, seemingly at ease with "Mama Aqua" watching over them.

_I suppose I will have to get used to that name._ I told myself. I squirreled myself away back into the cubbyhole, and set to gaze out over the countryside of the school. The children shouted and played 300 feet beneath me. The sun shone in a dazzling halo over the trees.

_What a paradise! _I thought. _The only thing that would make this day more complete would be if there was someone to share it with._ In my secret heart, I knew there would never be; even if such a person could be found, it would never work.

A great golden hawk flew down from the sun and perched above my head. I craned my neck to catch a glimpse of such a beautiful creature, and it swooped down into my cubbyhole. I froze hoping against hope that this was not her nest.

_Her_ nest? _Now how do you know that she is a she? _My inner self demanded to know. There was no way to know, but I could tell from her eyes and bearing that she was a stately matriarch.

She crouched before, stretched out her head, and pecked at my hand. She swiveled her head around to the entrance and pecked my hand again. She did that three times before I realized that I was to follow her, or move.

I unlimbered myself, and dove out the opening, following her. She fell in a spiral down to the basketball court, and took a rolling dive to the ground, landing gracefully. I matched her every more to perfection, and she took off again, only to land heavily on my unprotected shoulder. Her claws drew blood, but I didn't notice.

I heard voices calling my name, and trailed them back to the clearing where I had practiced earlier in the day. Logan came over to me warily, apparently unsure as to who or whom I was. "What's wrong?" I asked him.

He came closer, searching my face, and, satisfied that I was his little sister, handed me a small note that looked as though it had been written with a quill and inkwell.

"_Your sister is in Magneto's hands. If you want to see her one last time before she is gone forever, come to the York State High School within two hours. Otherwise, be prepared, for you won't like what you find in the floor of your school, where I've been informed that he will dump her body. I can help you, but you must follow my instructions to the letter._

_-A friend._"


	17. One Other Secret

I was bewildered that anyone would have such a sadistic sense of humor as to torture us with such a note as this.

"What could they mean, David? What has Magneto cooked up this time? It must be Sabertooth, though I can't see him having the initiative to do something like this. It has to be Magneto's orders he wants to lure me out where I can be vulnerable, he …"

"Hannah! Slow down. Don't panic. We don't know that it was Magneto, or Sabertooth, though all evidence points that way." I began to get slightly panicky remembering all the things he had done to me over the years, and mentally threw those memories far from me. The eagle dug her talons in; just hard enough to bring me back to the present. Scott asked, "Where did that thing come from?"

"Janné? She's the one who told me you were looking for me." They all stared at me as though I had lost my mind. "Janné? What, you have a new pet?" Logan asked sarcastically. Janné swiveled her head around to face him, and gave a low, derisive whistle. He blushed, and the others laughed.

"No, actually, I found a nice little cubbyhole where I can overlook the school, and check up on all the students outdoors without flying in circles for hours. She found me in there; I don't know how she knew you were looking for me, or who I was, but there you go." I gave them the whole story, and the professor asked, "What does he want with you, really?" I shook my head, only partially certain of the truth.

"In all honesty, the only thing that he could want would be my water powers, my ability to transfer powers and the things I can build." At their puzzled and confused looks, I realized I had mentioned another that I hadn't shown them. "Here," I said, holding my hands out, palms together. I drew them apart slowly, forming a water sculpture, using Logan as the focus.

He reached out and touched it, snatching his hand back as it suddenly became solid under his touch. I dropped it to avoid contact, and caught it in a fold of my skirt. Holding it out to my brother, I said, "Don't worry. It's just a part of the process. Anything I make with water will change to glass at the touch of another. It will stay that way as long as I don't touch it again."

Jean interrupted me. "But what about plain water? Will your water turn to glass if someone drinks it?" Again, I shook my head. "Only if the water is formed into a specific shape will it turn to glass. Regular drinking water is not affected at all."

They only half-listened to my explanations, lost in a kind of madcap mental race, against an unknown foe. I slowly began to realize the true effect of the sadism of the letter writer and could see what they were causing among my now beloved X-Men.

The combination of stress and the problems I had brought upon them were stretching nerves to the breaking point and causing whirlwind emotions to rise that would bind them all together as an unbreakable strength able to blast aside anything in their way, or create gigantic rifts that might end up breaking forever their close ties of friendship and love. Only time would tell from here.


	18. Catfight

"But what do we do about this letter. Do we answer or ignore this?" Logan demanded, frustrated from the stress of thinking he lost me, and anger at whoever wrote the letter. I quietly went over to his side, and laid a hand on his shoulder soothingly.

Janné transferred to my other shoulder so she could lean over and preen his hair, her demonstration of comfort. "Yes, Professor, what shall we do?" I asked.

"We have to answer them." Although none of us tried to protest, he knew we did not approve. Glaring at us, he burst out, "We have no choice! What will you do when some poor child's body is left in the hall? Will you take the blame!"

He glared at each of us individually, giving personalized reasons why we must do this: "Logan! How will you feel when we are all arrested for murder, and half those children in there are packed off to an orphanage? And you, Scott, I know you and Jean have seen the abuse that awaits a mutant child who is fortunate enough to get a job anywhere. It's worse than Hitler's domination of the Jews, and many of them are killed."

He pointed dramatically at the school's entrance. "I will not risk this school and the children in it!" A sob sounded from beside him, and he turned to see Storm weeping, a frightened four-year-old at her side. "Mama!" he wailed.

I crouched and held out my arms to him, and he ran for me, scared that his world was falling apart. Janné discreetly shifted herself to Logan's shoulder. I wrapped the still sobbing child in my wings, and shifted my attention to the professor.

"We must give Magneto what he wants." I rose in their silence, and returned the child to his room.

During their searching, and our argument, night had fallen, and most had already gone to their beds. He fell asleep in my arms, and I laid him gently down, and tucked him in. "Good night, my little one." He mumbled sleepily, "G'night, Mama." I tiptoed out, satisfied he would be fine.

I gently closed the door, and turned to find a shadowy figure standing inches from me. I leapt away, and then saw the tell-tale claws: Logan. I sighed heavily. "Don't scare me like that!" I hissed at him. He didn't say a word, and I saw a hint of gold appear in his near-invisible eyes. "Sister …" he hissed, drawing it out.

I had just enough time to cry warning to the others before all my attention was wrapped up in fighting the woman who was my former friend. As luck would have it, my earlier bout with David did come in handy. Now I knew how to fight Mystique because she used the exact same maneuvers he did; I just hoped she didn't know the last one.


	19. Confrontation

The woman jumped back, trying to circle, and find a weakness in my defense. She feinted an attack, and I swirled my heated water-ropes in a blurring figure-eight before her eyes. When I saw that my distraction was successful, I immediately lessened the temperature in the ropes, and wound them around her. Once she was secured, I waited for the others.

As they tromped up the stairs, I said over my shoulder, "So glad you could join us, David."I returned my attention to Mystique, and asked her, "Why did he send you?" She snarled at me, and I raised the temperature to nearly unbearable heat. She finally muttered, "Because Sabertooth was falling behind, and not doing his job."

I threateningly raised the temperature slightly higher, and she hissed in pain, but said no more. Unsatisfied, but unwilling to do more for now, I turned her over to Scott and Kurt, who took her away somewhere. I turned back to the professor, to finish our earlier conversation.

"She was sent on a different type of agenda than Sabertooth. I must end this, trap or no. And I must go alone." I turned to leave, but stopped when Logan grabbed my arm.

"No! I refuse to let you go alone!" I argued with him for a moment, and turned to the others for support of my plan. But, they had grouped in front of me, blocking my exit. They stared me down, until we reached a compromise. I would go first and follow the instructions that had been presented after I read the note. I must go to the school and meet this "friend", and hope that he was not affiliated with Magneto in any way.

Q

When I arrived at York State, I immediately resumed my normal illusions, and wandered into the cafeteria, carefully avoiding all the people who could recognize me. I sat down at a lunch table - my usual one - and waited for the note writer to show up. It didn't take long.

Laughing loudly enough that their voices traveled through my head like cymbals in my ear, the entire York State football team sat down, surrounding me. In the one seat in front of me was a face that I remembered fondly, as though from long ago, though it had barely been two weeks. I smiled in greeting, but Tom didn't return the gesture.

"So Aria, you finally see fit to return to me after I promised to help you." Suddenly, I realized that he was truly bitter over my leaving. I tried to explain, hoping that I wouldn't end up 'explaining' so much that he decided to call for the police.


	20. Heartsick

"Tom, I'm sorry. I told you when we first started dating that I might not be here long. There are people chasing me, mutants. I didn't want to see you hurt. I had barely escaped one of them earlier that day. That's why I left." Trying to get him to stop brooding, I changed the subject. "Did you send me that note?"

He continued staring at nothing, speaking half to himself, half to the world in general. "You were the sun in my eyes, Aria. I saw only you. You could have had any man in this school, even some of the teachers, but you chose me. My life was finally complete."

He lost his unfocused look and centered his gaze on me. "But then you left, tearing away my heart as you vanished down the road. I stood there for nearly an hour, straining for the faintest whisper of your cycle, praying you would come back to me."

He sighed again, and his gaze grew cold, cold enough to make me shiver and cause the few football players who hadn't turned away in embarrassment at his speech to turn away in fear. "You never returned. Now I have realized you would never return for me. So, why are you here?"

I was about to give him another placating, half-truthful explanation, when I saw a familiar head sweeping back and forth outside the window. Sabertooth peered through the window, glaring at any who dared meet his eyes. I felt my heart grow cold in fear. He was here for me.

Suddenly, thankfully, the bells rang, sending us back to class. I grabbed Tom and made my way into the classroom of a teacher who was on lunchroom duty, and as such, the place was blissfully empty. I closed the door behind me, and turned back to Tom. He was staring at me, as though he could burn his gaze into me. Though slightly afraid of him, I spoke. "If you recall, Thomas," (At my use of his full name, he winced, and broke his stare), "I told you the first day that we started dating that I would not stay for long, and that when I left, I would have no choice in the matter. You agreed to stay by me until then, and then forget about me. But as soon as I left, you broke that pact. You cannot accuse me of not warning you beforehand."

He glared at me, incensed. "Warning _me_? What about all the people I heard warning you about me? You were everything I had, Aria. And I intend to keep it that way." His words did not immediately penetrate my consciousness. But as he pushed me aside, and locked the door, I began to get worried. I slowly backed away from him, while he advanced on me. I fumbled for the panic alarm that Logan had made me take before he would let me go, But as I got my fingers on it, Tom pounced and tossed it out of my hands. I wrenched away, and the door burst open.


	21. It All Went Wrong

Sabertooth stood there, framed in what had been the doorway. He leapt into the room, crouching behind Tom's right side, who hadn't yet turned around. As he took in my horrified expression he grinned, and asked me, "Did you think that I was a mere human?" He threw his hand out towards Sabertooth, who cringed away, and then began writhing in convulsions. As abruptly as They had started, the convulsions stopped, and Tom withdrew his hand.

He leaned towards me conspiratorially and asked again, "If this is what I can do to my loyal followers, imagine what will happen if you refuse me... again?" I stumbled back once more, trying desperately to control my rising panic. Just before I lost it completely, four figures sprang into the room: Jason, Damon, David, and the girl whose name I had never learned.

They immediately set about attacking Tom. I would have joined in, but David warned me back. Sabertooth easily dispatched Jason and Damon, breaking ribs, heads, and everything in between, and tossing them aside. As the girl attacked him, he snarled and, perhaps because he wanted to, perhaps because Tom ordered him to, (I will never know), he grinned, and with a glance to make sure I was watching him, broke her neck.

I was frozen for all of two milliseconds, and then I launched myself at him, screaming my rage, and guilt. I never even laid hands on him. As I sailed across the room, something slammed into my side, nearly crushing my arm. It was Logan, but a Logan I had never seen. He wore a sadistic grin, and his claws were out, and pointed at me. He spoke. "Tom is right; you are a spoiled brat."

My shocked expression must have pleased him, because he smiled and continued as he attacked me, "You didn't really think that I believed all your bull about family, and you being my long-lost sister, did you? No, luckily, I met Tom before I could be suckered into your sob story. You, and your pretty words go hand-in-hand with the lines that I was fed by Mister Charles Xavier, so I knew immediately that I hated you." Even though I knew he was under Tom's control, his words still broke me.

Despite my crushed spirit, I still managed to half-heartedly block his attacks. He distracted me with a feint, then swept his feet behind mine, crashing me to the floor. Before I could rise, he dropped to the floor, and hovered over me, laying his blades along the line of my veins. He came even closer and whispered in my ear, "You know, even if you **were** my sister, I wouldn't acknowledge that a whiny brat like you even belonged to my family."

Somehow, I gathered a last reserve of rage, and surged up and away from him. As I made my escape though, his claws sliced across my belly, three perfect scores, extending from the sides of my ribs, and down, wrapping around my hips. My clothing in shreds, I ran.

In the corner of my vision, I saw the X-Men finally arriving: my "rescue", but too late to salvage my soul.

I fled them, hoping to forget that my life had ever existed and find death somewhere waiting for me. I heard footsteps, and Jean's voice behind me. I couldn't tell what she was saying, and I didn't want to. I burst onto the roof, a blood trail clearly defining my escape path. I jumped onto the railing, and changed to my natural self.

The doors were flung open behind me, and the professor spoke. "Aria! Don't! We need you! Please, come down." I whirled to face him, crouching in my own blood. "What Was Her Name!" I screamed at him. "What Was Her Name!" He faltered a moment, then whispered, "Jessica. Jessica Warren."

He tried to approach me, but I drove him back, feeling my strength and blood leaving me. "I can't! You should know that! I don't have David; he disowned me, and Jessica's death was my fault! I didn't even know her name!" I whispered the last to myself, and flung myself off the building. My wings pumped mightily, sending more blood pouring down my body. I flew above the city; no one ever even noticed my journey. When at last, I was too weary from blood loss to go any further, I dropped into an alley, hoping to find someone willing to finish me off.

I used the last of my fading strength to change, and then wrapped my arms around my cut torso, in an unconscious act of self-preservation. Through hazy vision, I saw someone approach me. I smiled at this total stranger, and whispered, "Goodbye, David." As my sight closed, something burst within them, freshening my pain and sending me into the black.


	22. The Healing Power of

I remember only the darkness in my soul. I remember hearing voices pleading with me to wake up, not to leave. I refused them all, except for one. His words brought me back, reminded me of what little sanity that I had held onto and locked away deep within me. I gave into his pleadings and cajoling, and began to recover.

Then the dreams started.

When I first woke up completely from my half-awake dream, I saw David standing in front of me, crying. I reached out a hand to him, and with a split-second mood change, he sliced at my fingers. I looked at the blood, then back at him, and he grinned. I sucked in air to scream, and found arms around me, and the voice that had brought me back from death.

I couldn't see a thing, and realized that I was frantically dry-washing my hands, wiping the dream blood away. The arms withdrew, and hands folding around mine, slowing my frantic movements. I turned towards where I knew the person was, but before I could speak, the voice did. "Shhh. You're safe now. David can't hurt you. Go back to sleep." I mumbled, "Not scared of David. Got to protect him. Can't leave him now..." My words trailed off, and the voice murmured reassurances as I fell asleep.

When I awoke again, I could feel the warmth of sunlight on my arm. I rolled over, trying to go back to sleep. I heard a door open, and turned back to see who it was. But, as hard as I tried, I couldn't open my eyes. I lifted a hand, and found cloth wrapped around my head. Faintly remembering how much my eyes had hurt as I fell, it made sense to me, somehow.

Someone reached out and pulled my hands away from my face, chiding, "Don't touch. You'll mess up all of my careful work, and you're in bad enough shape as it is." I obediently desisted, and identified the voice as male as he continued speaking. "Found you out in the alley, near bled to death, so we couldn't just leave you there. You didn't have a death wish, right?"

I could hear the smile in his voice, and tried to smile in return. "No, no death wish."

"Wonderful! I'm Michaellane Ashlar, call me Ash. What about you?" I was silent for a moment, pondering. I didn't know yet if these people were friendly to mutants, so Mama Aqua and Ari Lovella were out, seeing as I already had a reputation for those two, and since I refused to let anyone but David call me Hannah, I devised a compromise. "Call me ... Anna."

"Glad to meet you. Hungry?" He provided me with a bowl of something steaming, and deliciously hot. I found myself ravenous after rubbing shoulders with death. As I ate, Ash told me about where I was. I was inside a community of tightly-knit families, and Ash had been forced into some very delicate diplomacy in order to secure me a place here until I recovered.

I asked him a few questions about the people and was assured that they were good at heart, just edgy around newcomers. I did get around to asking him where we were, but he fended off that question so skillfully it took me a moment to realize it. But, by that time, I was too tired to push the issue.

Ash lifted the bowl and spoon out of my hands, a tacit command to rest in his movements. I fell back gratefully, before remembering my dream. I shot straight up, but Ash seemed to have already guessed my fears. "Go to sleep. Nothing can happen to you here. David will never hurt you again, I promise you that. We'll take care of it."

"Don't you dare touch him or I **will** kill you." I shocked Ash and myself with the vehemence I heard in my voice. I apologized to Ash explaining, "David is my brother, the only family I have left. He's not the one that concerns me." He nodded, respecting my decisions, and I settled back into a deep, and blissfully dreamless sleep.

Q

The next few days passed easily. I finally figured out that I was in a room set off to the side of a main living area. Ash and I talked often, usually to distract me from my fixation on Jessica's death. He knew that something had happened to me, but fortunately, during my dreams, and the ranting which accompanied them, the only person I had mentioned was David. He tried many times to get me to tell him what had happened, but each time I refused, telling him only that someone had died, and it still hurt too much to recount.

I pushed away and ignored my shrieking conscience which demanded that I inform someone, anyone of my whereabouts. I rationalized that I did not know where I was and that Ash either wouldn't or couldn't tell me, and it subsided slightly.

I was resting, trying to assess the extent of my injuries, when I heard the door open, and someone entered the next room. I heard low voices, (one of which I recognized as Ash, and the other I could only tell that it was male), discussing something with intense concentration. As they spoke, their voices rose, and I politely pretended not to hear until their other man said something about "Anna."

I listened even closer as their voices rose. "She can't stay here, Ash. If she realizes ... we'll be forced to keep her here, or silence her." Ash sharply rebuked this idea, and they moved away from the doorway. I kept up a pretense of sleep, hoping they would come back closer.

My patience was rewarded as I heard Ash say, "She's not a danger to us. Even if she were to figure out what we are, she wouldn't betray us. I highly doubt that she would run to those X-Men."

He spoke the last words fairly loudly, and with bitter anger like I had never heard. My heart turned to ice. We were neither of us human, but just from that tone of voice, he would hate me because I was one of the X-Men.

I shifted slightly, as the other man pulled Ash back from the door, berating him for talking too loud. He whispered one last command, and stalked out the door, nearly slamming it off the hinges. I heard Ash sigh angrily, and enter the room.

I shifted again, and stretched as though I were just waking up. He walked towards me, saying, "Awake now? I've been waiting. I have a surprise for you." I put aside my questions and fears to hear what he had to say.

He stood back from me slightly and said, "Two things: Number one, you can remove the bandages on your eyes today." As I became excited, I heard him smile as he said, "And number two... "

I felt a warm lump dropped into my lap. It uncurled slightly. I reached out a hand to it, and had it throughly licked, before the puppy crawled up my chest and barked in my ear, settling behind my neck like a living pillow.

Ash laughed, and pulled the puppy out of the way, placing it back in my lap. "She's yours. What will you name her?" I stared at where I knew he was standing, unable to believe he would give me a dog. "Are you sure she's mine?"

I heard the laughter in his voice dim, then return as he said, "She's yours. Name her, and I'll tell you the rest." He waited, and I came to a decision. "Her name is ... Aisa."

"Perfect," and I smiled to hear the joy in his voice. But then, he faltered. I set Aisa to the side, and gestured for him to sit and tell me what was wrong. He dragged a chair to the side of the bed, and in silence, unwrapped my eyes.

As the last strip fell away, I opened my eyes, eager to finally see where I was. The room was dark. I asked Ash, "Why are we sitting in the dark? Is it night?" He sighed once, and I felt a chill, suddenly realizing. "I'm blind, aren't I?"

He replied with complete equanimity, "Yes. We have had our best check your eyes, and as far as they can tell, it's permanent. We're not even sure what happened. Our best guess is that when you passed out from blood loss, you contracted an infection that killed the nerves in your eyes."

I nodded, and Ash wrapped his arms around me, giving me a solid comfort which I returned to the best of my ability. We sat motionless, for I don't know how long, until I felt something wet in the top of my head. I looked up, and a single tear hit my face. I reached up a corner of the blanket, and wiped away the next one. Ash blinked and looked down at me, as though he had just realized he was crying.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault. If I had stayed with my medical studies longer ..."

I shook my head. "You wouldn't be here if you had. And you can't blame yourself for what you can't control. I have lost worse than my sight in the past weeks. I lost a child who was as dear to me as a daughter. Her name was Jessica Warren, and when I find the man responsible, I will kill him."

He was about to ask me who killed her, but I refused to let him, knowing that if he asked me, the whole story would come out, and I would no longer be his patient, but a member of the X-Men. It could wait for another time. He took the hint, and we sat silent, together.


	23. Blindness

We eventually parted and I pretended to not be greatly affected by my loss, but deep inside, it hurt. It hurt to know that I had lost my sight. I had waited until Ash left to vent my own feelings, but I was less upset than I had expected to be. Somehow, I had known all along that my eyes were damaged beyond repair.

I wrestled for a short while with how it could have possibly happened, then gave up and filed it away as one of life's imponderables. I let my fingers trace my side and stomach, following the scars David had given me.

There were three of them, perfectly parallel, slanting sideways. I suppose I should be grateful that they slant, seeing as a straight cut, either horizontal or vertical, would have gutted me, or sliced my throat.

I stood, and stretched, determined that now that I could navigate, and knew the extent of my limitations, that I would exercise as I had before I was wounded. I let my body flow naturally into each movement, remembering how these forms had been forcibly taught to me. I hadn't wanted to learn, but Magneto made me. Funny how the very things he taught me for his own ends I would use to destroy him.

Thoughts of my uncle led to thoughts of Sabertooth, which led to Tom. As his face crossed my mind unbidden, I stopped. I coldly examined what I knew of him. I had never let him get close enough to really know me, and hadn't bothered to find out about him either. He was hot, admittedly, and so was I, but it was hardly a relationship that should incite such possessiveness in anyone.

Firmly setting him aside, I came face-to-face with what I had been avoiding: David Logan. He, I knew better than anyone else. Even though we had only been reacquainted in the last month, we had always been close as children. I remembered everything about him, down to his favorite flowers, but I wasn't sure if he still remembered any of that time.

Reviewing his life, I could see that no matter, which way you looked at it, his words and actions that day had been those of someone else. He had been under Tom's control; therefore I could forgive him easily. Tom, not so.

Thoughts of that day were still painfully fresh, and I felt tears in my eyes. Falling to the floor, I cried. "Oh, David, why? Why couldn't we save her? You can't blame yourself, but I should have stopped them...I should have stopped them. I didn't even know her name, and now this! Jessica, Jessie, you deserved a real mother, not a fake."

I could feel my tears, streaming down my face to slip silently back under my skin as my powers automatically conserved fluids. I rose, and, still silently, began to dance. It was one I had learned during my six years on the run. I loved dance, and stopped at a dance school. It offered a dance of lament, as for the death of a loved one, and I practiced it constantly until I knew it by heart. I performed it for a grade in memory of my parents, and left.

Now, my foresight there was proving useful. _Listen to you, you idiot. The great Mama Aqua, seeing everything as something that can be turned to your advantage. You're a coward. That's why you didn't move to stop "**your**" children._ _That's why even now, you hide here, not bothering to tell the ones who claim to love where you are, or even tell the man who saved your life **what** you are._

I stopped at that, and argued out loud with my voices. "You're wrong there. I can't. He would hate me. If I found out that he was keeping a secret like this from me, I would be upset, to say the least."

The voice continued nastily. _Coward! You just agreed with me. If he finds out your keeping secrets, he will **hate** you, just as you said._

I sharply shut the voice off, and realized that I was not alone. I looked around, and somehow recognized Ash. I turned and acknowledged him.

He immediately asked me, "What secrets?" I sighed and for a moment more, debated with myself. I wanted Ash to know the truth before I left, but I couldn't face retelling that day yet. I compromised.

"I will tell you my secrets the day I leave. Please, Ash, too much has occurred since then, and it has only been a few days since it happened. It's not enough time for me to come to grips with reality. Give me time; that's all I ask."

He sighed, and told me, "You've been here five weeks now." At my incredulous expressions he explained.

"It took you an entire month to recover. The worst part of it was, I knew you didn't want to come back; that's why I haven't pressed you on the matter. I knew if it was bad enough that you would rather die than face it, that it wasn't worth discussing until you were ready. So I will give you time, but only as long as you can promise me that these secrets will not harm any of us that live here."

I was shocked to discover that it had been an entire month, but agreed. I would face those demons when I had to, and burn the bridges behind me.


	24. Revelations

1When we had straightened that out, I made Ash sit down and talk with me.

"Okay, Ash. If you want me to give up my secrets, you'll have to give up some of yours." He seemed amused, but agreed with my reasoning.

He began. "I told you my name is Michaellane Ashlar." At my puzzled nod, he continued. "What I didn't tell you is that I am...well, please don't take this the wrong way, but I'm a mutant." He quickly continued before I could react.

"I'll show you my powers, but not yet, let me finish first. My brother is also a mutant, as is everyone in this community. Our powers vary, but we do have one thing in common: we all admire Magneto, though some of us not as much as others..."

He trailed off, then picked up his storyline again, not seeing the horrified expression I wore. "This compound where we live is in New York city limits, but some of us use our powers to disguise it as an old warehouse, and we have sufficiently scared away the few vandals that they never bother with this place anymore.

My parents have lived here ever since I was born. They moved in here with my older brother when my mother found out she was pregnant with me. My brother always adored Magneto, and insisted on watching any news broadcasts that he was featured in. He never believed that what Magneto did was really wrong, just wrong by human laws. When he and some of the other teens began chafing under the need to hid, we sent them to Magneto. I haven't heard back from him since, but I know he's happy. Mother watches the news for any sign of him."

He looked back at me, and finally saw the expression I wore. He immediately cut off his tale, coming to my side. "Anna? Anna, what's wrong? What did I say?"

I looked up at him, but didn't really see him. My eyes were watching the long-suppressed memories swirling through my head. Voices echoing from what had already happened...

"_Don't worry, Hannah, we'll be home soon. There's just someone I need to pick up first. A friend of mine. Is that alright with you?"_ _Six-year-old Hannah Carter looked up at her uncle, still a little overwhelmed and unable to believe she was out of the orphanage. Shyly, she nodded. Her uncle smiled, and she felt better._

_They stopped by an alley, and a heavily coated man flowed_ _out of the shadows to the car. He slipped into the seat, and her uncle locked the doors. A simple reflexive action in this part of town, but it put Hannah on edge. Her uncle turned his head slightly to the man. "Did you bring what I requested?"_

_At the man's nod, her uncle smiled, but it was not a reassuring smile this time, but rather a cold, calculating one. He glanced back at her, still huddled on the seat, and answered, "I have the girl. She's everything we will need. I'll hand over her training to you. Do as you like, but keep her alive." _

_The man turned his gaze on her, and Hannah found herself looking into two un-shining dark gems. He regarded her with the same calculating gaze her uncle had. He spoke. "There are others who would be willing to join your cause." Her uncle slashed his hand down in a gesture of negation. "No, I have no need of their talents. Your's is a power for greatness. Their's is not."_

"_Then what of my younger brother, Michaellane? His power, at least, could be used for greatness." Her uncle glanced at her in the rearview mirror, and then at the traffic. "Perhaps. But for now, all I need is you, and her." The man threw back his hood, revealing a hauntingly cruel face that she would learn to fear. "Who is she?"_

_Her uncle calmly shifted gears. "My brother's child, Hannah Carter."_

I came back to myself, feeling my body shake as Ash tried to wake me. I opened my eyes, and he quit. Still keeping a firm grasp on my arms in case I slipped back int memories, he asked me, "What happened?"

I forced a smile, and kept my voice light. "Nothing. It was just a memory." he looked as though he wanted to press me for answers but I forestalled his questions. "It's part of the secrets I will tell you when I leave, I promise. Please, continue your story."

He didn't look convinced, but did as I requested. I only half-listened to the rest of what he said, too astounded by the fact that Sabertooth was his brother. I vowed to myself not to hurt Ash, no matter how much I hated his brother.


	25. Discovered

The day came sooner than I had expected. I had no choice. I awoke in my quiet room three weeks after Ash told me who his brother was, hearing the soothing sounds of life on the other side of the wall. I stood looking out the window, the sun heating my sightless eyes. Suddenly, I felt a shadow cross in front of me. A heavy weight landed on my unprepared shoulder, knocking me to the ground, and knocking over a table in the process.

A trill sounded in my ear. "Janné?" I gasped out, trying to get my breath back. I heard the door open behind me as Janné lifted herself up from me. "Anna? You okay?" Ash asked me, sliding a hand under my back. He helped me to my feet, and I shook the dust off. "I'm fine."

I snapped my arm up, inviting Janné to perch. She opened her wings to fly to me, and Ash shoved me behind him, warding her away. He snapped over his shoulder at me. "Go. There's an old man two doors down on the left. Go get him now! This bird belongs to that X-Man, Mama Aqua, and if it's here, she can't be far behind!"

I froze, unable to stop the tears as I heard how much bitter hatred there was in his voice as he spoke my name. He turned to face me, annoyance written on his features. He slowly changed to an expression of confusion at my tears. "What's wrong?"

A thump echoed on the windowsill, and we looked up in unison to see Kurt. He cocked an eyebrow at me, caught Janné on one arm, and stood waiting expectantly. Ash launched himself at Kurt, hands outstretched. I tackled him, unable to let him hurt Kurt. Ash rolled to face me, his hands brushing the table, and I sat on his chest. "No! Please, no!"

I collapsed on top of him, crying. He wrapped his arms around me. I looked up to see that Kurt still stood there, and then he vanished out the window. I fought free of Ash, and ran to the window. There was no sound or sign that Kurt had been here.

Hands caught my shoulders, throwing me back across the room onto my bed. Ash stared at me as though I had just changed to my natural self. I couldn't make myself look in his direction. He sank onto the chair, staring at me. We sat in silence, broken only by my quiet tears.

Finally I stood. "Ash..." I couldn't go on. I turned to the table beside my bed. Opening the top drawer, I removed the letter I had written three weeks ago. I faced the man who had saved my life, and found myself unable to give him the one thing he deserved: the truth. I walked towards him, and something crunched under my feet.

Crouching, I felt wood. It was half of the table Ash's hands had brushed as he tried to attack Kurt. Running my hands across the carpet, I found the other half. Little bits of what I identified as iron, sulfur, and other basic elements were littered beneath my feet.

I raised my eyes to Ash, and he sighed. "Now you know who I am." All of a sudden, I did know. He was the top potential recruit on my uncle's list. Codename: Basic. He rose, pacing towards me.

"So, what do you think, Anna? Your savior is nothing more than a killer!" His voice became more and more angry as he neared me, and on the last word he lunged at me, grabbing my arms and shaking me. The letter flew from my grasp, and he picked it up. I tried to take it from him, but he refused me.

He stood and I folded my hands over his, preventing him from opening the letter. "Please, just read it, without passing judgement." Slowly, he nodded, and I drew in a deep breath. _Here it comes_, I thought. _The end of everything that I love. Now I'll lose him forever._


	26. Finally

I spoke. "Ash, I know you feel betrayed now, but please, just listen to me." He nodded slowly, reluctantly.

"You have saved my life, and I have refused to tell you my secrets because I knew how you would react. Now, I have no choice. That letter will tell you everything. Please, no matter how much you come to hate me, read it before you destroy it. You don't have to read it immediately, just please read it...someday."

I stood back, closer to the window, and changed to my natural form. His eyes grew wide, and he opened his mouth to call an alarm. I felt tears spring to my eyes, and I spoke before he could shout. "Forgive me, Ash. I never wanted to hurt you, but I had no choice." I spun and launched myself out the window. Behind me, Ash ran to the window, one shout escaping him, and above the clamor, Aisa's wailing howl broke my heart. I flew away from the place I felt at home, driven away by the past.

Q

Ash fell back from the window, pushed aside by older and wiser heads, who had warned him about the woman he had saved, and somehow along the way, fallen in love with. While they clamored and shouted frantically, he sank onto her bed. As they walked out, his father turned to him. "I'm sorry, son. She tricked us all." He bowed his head, walking out the door. As it shut behind him, Ash felt a wet nose nudge his hand.

He looked down to see Aisa. She nudged his fist again, and he opened it to see the letter Anna ... no, **Mama Aqua **had handed him. He stared at it for a long moment, until Aisa barked at him, and nudged his hand again.

Heaving a sigh, he slowly opened the letter, reading.

"_Ash, my name is not Anna. You must know that by now. I am really Mama Aqua, the mutant that you hate so much. I'm sorry, Ash. I hoped it would never come to this; that this letter would be destroyed unopened, but my hand was forced. I would have told you the truth long ago, Ash, but then you told me how much you admired Magneto, and even worse, who your brother was._

_This is something that I never wanted you to hear, but Magneto is my uncle. My own family. That should make us allies, but you don't know my uncle. He is a sadist, Ash. After my parents died, he adopted me, and put me in the care of a man whose name I will always be afraid of: Sabertooth. I know this is something you never want to hear about a family member, but he was my captor. Whenever Magneto had an experiment he wanted to try, I was his guinea pig, and Sabertooth was the one who performed the experiments. My uncle made him train me as a dancer, an assassin, a stripper, a performing animal, anything he could think of for his "research." _

_I learned quickly how much pain can be inflicted on a person before they die. Every time I refused to learn a new assignment, Magneto turned me over to Sabertooth for "teaching," as he called it. Soon, I would never question anything that Sabertooth told me to do. I didn't fear the throne, I feared the power that enforced it._

_I escaped, and Magneto sent Sabertooth after me. I found the X-Men, and among them, the one man that Sabertooth hates the most: Wolverine, my brother. Our brothers hate each other, and somehow, we found each other. The one person your brother wants the most, you healed. The one man you hate the most turns out to be the brother of the woman you love. Yes, Ash. I knew your feelings long before you did. And I love you too. I will always love you, even though you want me dead. Goodbye, Ash my love. We will not meet again, though I should wish it otherwise. Goodbye._

_-Mama Aqua"_


	27. Light Into Darkness

**Light Into Darkness**

Ash threw the letter aside in disgust, then picked it up again, smoothing out the wrinkles, unable to let go of her even though she had wounded him so deeply. Snarling, he just barely managed to keep himself from crumpling the letter yet again as anger and hurt darkened his vision. Great, he'd soon be joining her in her dark world at this rate. Strange though, that at this moment it would occur to him just how much light had come into his life since she had literally flown into it.

As he prevented himself from trying to destroy his last link to Ann... Mama Aqua, he felt wetness on his hand. Looking down, he realized he hadn't lost all ties to her and sighing, allowed Aisa to crawl into his lap.

Why? Why couldn't she have trusted him? It wouldn't have mattered... he cut that thought off, before he could lie to himself again. It **would **have mattered, unfortunately. There was no way he could calmly accept everything she said about his brother, much less her accusations against his childhood hero. Still... he cut himself off again, unable to handle the fact that he loved her.

Q

I flew on, listening for a sign of Kurt or Janné. Continuing on, I soon found myself in familiar territory, and landed away from the noise of the street, behind a building, folding away my wings, ears, and height. I hadn't realized just how far I had flown in my pain-filled terror: over seventy miles now stood between me and Ash and the weeks we had shared.

As I walked out, I perceived just how much of myself I had left behind. Silently, I shelved it in a corner of my mind, determined not to think about Ash or anything pertaining to him. I was going home, that would have to be enough, and I was not going to allow the fact that I was going home alone to bother me.

While I dealt with myself, and argued with my reminiscent thoughts, I failed to hear a sound behind me, and was unprepared when Janné landed on my shoulder. As I turned under her weight, I felt Kurt's hand slip around my waist, steadying me and when my balance returned, he asked softly, "Are you ready to go home?"

Sighing as the compassion and sympathy in his voice registered, I laid my head against his shoulder and whispered, "Yes." His arm tightened slightly, before sliding around my waist in a firmer grip, and I felt my heart lighten because I wasn't going home quite as alone as I thought.

We popped into existence just inside the front door of the mansion. I felt slender arms flung around me, and I hugged Rogue. Looking up towards me, she said, "He's been waiting for you, Mama."

Taking her hand, I followed her up the stairs to the professor's office.

As I reached the doorway, I paused, hesitating. Shaking my head, I silently berated myself, and stepped through the door. I heard what sounded like a small explosion from the direction of the professor's desk, and strong arms wrapped around me tightly. I let myself go then, collapsing into my brother, weeping with the pain, loss, frustration and love of the past month and a half.

Finally, David and I parted. I turned to the professor, who had come up behind us, and bent down to hug him as well. He held my arms, preventing me from straightening, and searched my eyes. He made a small noise, and I knew he had noticed my sightless stare.

"Mama..." he began, but cut off as others came in the door. Ororo burst into tears, hugging me, before I was grabbed away by Scott, who kissed me before his mind caught up with his actions. It was quick enough that no one commented, and Jean crowded in behind him, along with my students, all of them thankful that Mama was finally home.

Q

A loud crash sounded from within the room, the eleventh in the past half-hour. Cautiously, Sabertooth poked his head around the door. Spotting him, Ash lowered the glass he had been about to shatter, though he was tempted to send it zinging towards his brother's head. He let it slip into a box of broken shards, turning to face his brother's intrusive presence.

"I understand you had a run-in with her." Sabertooth stated, taking in the shambles around him. The bed she had slept in and the few things Ash had given her remained untouched, but the rest of the room was trashed, some of the items half gone, with bits and pieces of them flung across the floor; undeniable testament to his brother's inability to think clearly or fully control his powers where this girl was concerned. His temper had definitely got the better of him here.

Ash nodded silently, afraid to say too much for fear of losing his temper and letting loose his barely controlled rage again. _Now,_ he thought, _it's time for some answers. I have to know if Mama Aqua was right, or just vindictive. _He watched his brother's reaction closely as he asked him, "Where is she?"

Chuckling through a snarl, Sabertooth replied sarcastically as his attention was drawn back to his brother. "Where do you think? She ran crying back to her weak little friends. Good riddance, I'd say, except he wants her back."

Ash paused in his clean up of the glass, head turning to study his brother dispassionately. "He wants her back?" The hand hidden at his side fisted itself around a particularly large shard, as he silently begged his brother not to give him the answer he was expecting.

He was disappointed. "Yep, Magneto wants to teach the brat a lesson. Make her understand her real place in this world; or those were his words, at least." Sabertooth grinned, running a clawed hand through his hair.

Ash stood, the glass fragment still fisted in his right hand. "Teach the brat a lesson?" His voice came out cold and flat; he was surprised it sounded so neutral when he was filled with so much rage. Oblivious to his brother's rising anger, Sabertooth grinned again, nodding happily. "Uh huh, and I hope I'm the one who gets to teach her." His grin turned cold, its arctic chill clashing with the growing fires of Ash's hatred.

Ash snapped, swinging the glass towards his brother. "Mine," he snarled at Sabertooth, who dodged easily, shock overwriting his features. "Mine," he snarled again, "and it will stay that way."

Sabertooth dodged again, his shock replaced with anger, scorn, and a barely perceptible suggestion of fear. "Magneto gave her to me, little brother. She's an X-Man. Don't you get it? She deserves everything Magneto's done and will do to her."

"Oh, I get it alright." Ash's hand slammed into Sabertooth's neck, just behind his ear at the base of his skull, stunning him. He slumped against the wall, dizzied, and through the ringing in his ears, heard his brother say, "You tortured a child for the sake of twisted, sadistic old man, who wants to play God and get revenge for the sins of humanity."

Ash walked out -Aisa at his heels- dismissing everything he had thought he believed in for a new belief in love. He exited the warehouse compound, weaving through the alleys. He paused for a moment as a thought hit him. Had he truly believed, or had he simply accepted the things his parents and brother told him as truth without ever really questioning them? He nodded to himself, acknowledging his failures, then crouched down to Aisa. Ruffling his hand along her ears, he whispered, "Find her."

With a joyful, huffing bark, Aisa took off on the hunt, Ash at her heels, searching for the woman who had brought light into their darkness.


	28. Confession

**Confession**

I sat in peace, the heat of sunshine filtering down into the trees I sat beneath. I let myself bake for a while, contemplating my new existence. Life was certainly more complicated without sight. I had spent most of the day, wandering around the school, orienting myself to the layout. Fortunately, there had only been one awkward moment when I walked into the showers as Scott was coming out. We decided on mutually ignoring each other, and went on. I was now trying to relearn the grounds. Following instructions from Rogue, Kitty and Storm, I had come out here to orient myself. No wonder I was lost. I had originally meant to come out here and find... find...

I huffed, annoyed at myself that I couldn't accept her death even in the relative privacy of my own mind. Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself firmly of why I was out here: to visit Jessie's, my daughter's, grave.

There are only two things that I hate more in this world than my uncle: death, and survivor's guilt. You'd think after dealing with my guilt over my parents' death all these years, (for which I actually was responsible), I'd be able to let go of my guilt over Jessica much more easily. Not so. It seems the pain of losing a child is vastly different and a thousand times more painful to the heart than the death of a parent.

Rising to my feet, I took a few steps away from the bench, determined not to get lost again, and heard someone approaching. The tread of two pairs of feet: one light and precise, and the other quicker but shuffling, told me who it was; and without turning, I acknowledged them. "Jean, Scott, good morning." I felt Scott's surprise, but Jean replied, "Morning, Mama," her amusement at Scott and her affection for me coloring her voice. She elbowed him, breaking his trance.

Clearing his throat, he added his own greeting, embarrassment coloring every word. "Morning. Need anything, Mama?" Smiling, I shook my head. "I just came to visit Jessie, and paused to rest and get my bearings for a minute." We stood in silence, as they searched for a proper response to a statement that had none.

These two. The perfect couple in the eyes of most of the world. However, it seemed very different to me. Though their love for each other was clear in every word, right now they both seemed… distracted, from each other. Jean was busy rebuffing David's advances, I knew, and Scott had apparently focused in on me. Further proof of a messed-up world, as if I had needed any. The good thing was something told me that, even if they both were focused on someone else at the moment, their love would survive the test.

Finally, Jean shook herself free of Scott's arm that was looped around her shoulders, and told him, "Why don't you show Mama where to go? I've got a class in ten minutes. I'll see you later, love." She kissed him, and jogged down the path, waving goodbye to me. Scott stood by himself for an awkward moment, then shook his head, and touched my arm. "I'll take you there." He tucked my hand into his arm, and we set off down the path.

The morning was silent, peacefully so. Most of the students were on the other side of the school in class or sports, so the only noise around us was the crunch of gravel as we walked. I was completely happy with silence, but it apparently made Scott nervous, because we had barely made it around the corner from the trees when he spoke. "Um, Mama, I need to say something."

I paused and looked up at him, trying to focus on his face so my stare was less disconcerting. "Which incident will we be referring to here? My homecoming, or when I walked in on you this morning?"

Even without my sight, I could tell he was blushing. He mumbled something that sounded like "homecoming." I heard him open and close his mouth a few more times; trying to find the right words, and smiled. Holding up my hand, I forestalled his confession. "I know. You weren't exactly subtle about it," I said, gentling my voice to take the bite out of my words. "As far as I'm concerned, nothing happened for you to feel as guilty as you do."

If anything, I felt the weight of his guilty expression increase. "Maybe you're okay with... it, and you understand, but I just..." He huffed in frustration, as his words ground to a halt. I smiled.

"Scott, do you plan to leave Jean for me?" He sucked in a horrified gasp, which was enough for me, and I cut off his next words. "Then don't worry about it. I'm not upset, Jean's not upset; everything is fine."

Turning, I ended the conversation by tugging him down the path. I only wish I'd realized then that the conversation would never really be over.


	29. All I Need

**All I Need**

I kept walking, knowing that Scott would recover momentarily and join me. The wind whistled around me, filling my heart with a yearning to touch the sky again. I hadn't flown since my return. I mentally filed away some time to fly after my visit with Jessie. Scott joined me, and placed a hand under my elbow, guiding me off to the right. Neither of us spoke as we drew near the headstone.

I moved forward, away from Scott's comforting hand, and slowly, very slowly, reached out to trace her name. Jessica Danielle Warren: 1993-2008. I bowed my head, hoping to find some solace here. I heard Scott shift awkwardly behind me, and turned slightly. "You should go ahead, Scott, I know you've got classes, and I'm going to be here a while." I heard him nod and, with a barely audible sigh of relief, he crunched away in the direction of the mansion.

15 years. All the time she was given on this earth. Doesn't seem like enough time to change the world, but it doesn't have to. All that's needed is the time to change one person's world, no more. It took her three weeks to change my life. Funny, isn't it? I've been hunting throughout the world for answers, and yet I find that I don't need them anymore. All I need is what she gave me.

I rose, pressed my fingers to my lips, and brushed them across her headstone. "For you, my beautiful daughter." I launched myself into the sky, changing as I did so. I flew straight up, higher than I had ever gone before, almost higher than I could bear, and _**danced**_.

I don't know how many hours I swooped across the sky, but I noticed when the sun began to go down. As I descended to the campus, I ran my eyes across the ground, checking on my students. Everything seemed in order. The basketball court still had a few diehard players gathered on it, and there were a few couples walking through the gardens. Yes, everything was as it should be. Storm rose to meet me, and I smiled in greeting. Her lack of response set off warning bells.

"We've got a problem."


End file.
